[Edaily Reporter Kim Sung-kon ] President Lee Jae-myung visited the National Assembly on the 2nd to deliver his policy address. This is an opportunity to explain the basic direction of state affairs and the rationale behind the national budget to both the ruling and opposition parties, as well as the public. The focus is on next year’s budget proposal. Differences in stance remain stark, not only regarding the 821 trillion won “super budget” but also concerning the Future Response Fund—which serves as a special bonus stemming from the semiconductor boom. When you look at it closely, the State of the Nation Address is an olive branch extended by the president toward cooperative governance. Its purpose is to urge the National Assembly, as the legislative branch, to pass next year’s budget proposal within the statutory deadline. However, this spirit of cooperation ended as soon as it began. The discord and friction evident in past presidents’ State of the Nation Addresses continued this year as well. Whose fault is it, really?

◇ A Power Struggle Looms Over the Budget Season… Divergent Stances of the Ruling and Opposition Parties Toward the President

The budget season kicks into high gear following the President’s State of the Nation Address. First, 17 standing committees—including the Planning and Finance Committee, the Political Affairs Committee, the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, and the Education Committee—review the budget proposals of their respective ministries. Subsequently, the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts conducts a comprehensive review to prevent departmental self-interest and ensure the efficient allocation of resources. If disagreements between the ruling and opposition parties persist, the matter moves to the Subcommittee on Budget Adjustment; if no resolution is reached there, a de facto agreement is reached in an “informal subcommittee” that doesn’t even produce official minutes. This informal subcommittee is a non-official consultative body attended by only a very small number of participants, including the chair of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts, the ruling and opposition party secretaries, the Second Vice Minister of Economy and Finance, and the Director-General of the Budget Office. The budget bill is then finalized through a plenary session of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts and subsequent passage in the plenary session of the National Assembly.

However, following the President’s State of the Nation Address, the focus has shifted away from the budget bill to highly peripheral issues. The contrasting attitudes of the ruling and opposition parties are a constant source of controversy. The ruling party typically greets the President with applause and cheers. On this occasion, the Democratic Party applauded the President’s address 30 times. The main opposition party, however, responded with loud shouts and jeers. Lawmakers from the People Power Party attached signs to their laptops reading, “Stop intimidating the judiciary! Defend judicial independence! / 1,400 trillion won in national debt + 162 trillion won in future debt pile-up fund.” In particular, some lawmakers jeered during the speech or walked out.

Looking at past State of the Nation addresses, there is no difference between the Democratic Party and the People Power Party. It is a glaring case of double standards. Although there have been frequent changes in administration since the 2000s—from the Roh Moo-hyun administration to the Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye administrations, then to the Moon Jae-in administration, followed by the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, and now the Lee Jae-myung administration—the pattern remains the same. Despite the State of the Nation Addresses being largely similar, their reception changes 180 degrees depending on the childish question of “Is the president on our side or not?” Similar scenes were witnessed multiple times during President Lee’s address that day.

◇Where Has Dignified Politics Gone? Repeated Shouting and Protests in the Plenary Hall

The scene in the plenary hall steals the show during the State of the Nation Address. Along with the National Assembly’s opening ceremony and the opening of the regular session, the President’s State of the Nation Address sees the highest attendance rate among lawmakers from both the ruling and opposition parties—nearly 100 percent. This stands in stark contrast to the nearly empty plenary hall during government question sessions or filibusters. News coverage of the President’s State of the Nation Address is endlessly amplified and reproduced not only in newspapers, on broadcast TV, and on cable news channels but also on YouTube. The ruling and opposition parties have different underlying motives for watching the address. For the Democratic Party, the goal is to secure photo opportunities for the next general election. This is evident from the long lines of lawmakers lining up to shake hands with President Lee as he enters and exits the chamber.

On the other hand, for lawmakers from the People Power Party, it is a time for “rising stars.” It is a golden opportunity to secure a support base, as seen with Party Leader Jang Dong-hyuk and lawmakers Lee Jin-sook, Kim Tae-kyu, and Ju Jin-woo. In particular, even if scenes of loud outbursts and protests in the plenary chamber run counter to political decorum and etiquette, they can reap the practical benefit of “hardcore fan support.” It is similar to the controversy over “backroom budget deals” involving influential figures from both parties. Despite a barrage of criticism from the media, constituents in their districts praise them, saying, “They secured tens of billions in the budget even while taking the heat.” The logic is similar to that behind People Power Party lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo unfurling a banner reading “Oppose the Pardon of Cho Kuk and Yoon Mi-hyang” at last year’s Liberation Day celebration.

The scene in the plenary hall during this year’s state-of-the-city address was exactly as expected. In contrast to the Democratic Party’s round of applause, the People Power Party showered the speaker with loud shouts and jeers. When President Lee briefly paused his speech, Representative Kim Mi-ae even raised her voice, demanding, “Resume the trial!” The same pattern continued after the address concluded. The Democratic Party’s standard procedure was to wait for handshakes and take selfies. In contrast, most People Power Party lawmakers refused to shake hands and left the chamber immediately. The only People Power Party figure to exchange handshakes was Rep. Jo Gyeong-tae, who is rumored to be joining the Democratic Party for the upcoming general election.

This isn’t the first time. State of the Nation addresses by past presidents have followed a similar pattern. Opposition protests are a trademark of the opposition party. Every means has been mobilized—from picket protests in the Rotunda Hall to shouting and jeering in the plenary chamber, refusing to stand or clap, wearing formal attire or mourning ribbons, and holding up protest signs. During the Moon Jae-in administration, former South Chungcheong Governor Kim Tae-heum harshly protested, shouting, “Apologize. Is this even a country?” During the Park Geun-hye administration, Democratic Party lawmakers staged a protest holding signs reading, “Come out, Choi Soon-sil.” During the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Yong-min bluntly protested, “You should step down now,” while Progressive Party lawmaker Kang Seong-hee stated, “What needs to be cut is not R&D, but the presidential term.”

◇Is Budget Approval a Battle of Numbers? The Democratic Party Faces a Dilemma Between Numerical Superiority and the Practice of Consensus

“The government shall prepare a budget bill for each fiscal year and submit it to the National Assembly no later than 90 days before the start of the fiscal year, and the National Assembly shall adopt it no later than 30 days before the start of the fiscal year.” This is stipulated in Article 54, Paragraph 2 of the Constitution. The statutory deadline for passing the budget bill is December 2. The reason the budget bill must be passed at least 30 days before the start of the fiscal year is simple. It is because government ministries and local governments need an administrative preparation period to be able to execute the budget starting on New Year’s Day. The passage of the budget bill requires a standard quorum for general deliberations. Unlike constitutional amendments or impeachment, it does not require the approval of two-thirds or more of the total membership. It passes with a majority of the 300 National Assembly members present and the approval of a majority of those present.

Given that the Democratic Party holds 161 seats, it could pass the bill on its own. The essence of politics in Yeouido is numerical superiority—or, to put it bluntly, a battle of “numbers.” This was the source of power that allowed the Democratic Party to restore the local currency budget—which had been entirely cut from the government’s original proposal—during the Yoon Suk-yeol administration. That said, the Democratic Party cannot simply push the bill through at will. Unlike contentious legislation, it has long been customary for the budget bill to be passed through consensus between the ruling and opposition parties. The People Power Party, despite its numerical disadvantage, is the Democratic Party’s lifeline. Of course, even this must be backed by public support. However, considering the strategic missteps and errors in judgment the People Power Party displayed during the National Assembly Steering Committee’s audit of the Presidential Secretariat—an event that could be viewed as a “monologue by the opposition”—it is doubtful whether they will be able to provide effective checks and balances.

If the State of the Nation Address was a call for cooperative governance regarding the budget bill, then the passage of the budget bill is the response to that call. The essence of cooperative governance is “give and take.” Even if it appears to be a backroom deal, it is the very essence of democracy—dialogue and compromise. However, the attitudes of both the ruling and opposition parties evident in today’s plenary session were “all or nothing.” The Democratic Party is overconfident in its numerical advantage of an “absolute majority.” The People Power Party is engaging in obstructionism with an “unconditional no” stance. This is the result of an extreme political landscape in which both parties rely on their hard-line supporters. Consequently, the cooperative governance symbolized by the President’s State of the Nation Address has effectively come to an end before it even began.